The Solidarity Fund 2.0 provides one-time grants to individual artists, cultural workers, and small arts organizations in the US South experiencing financial emergency or hardship specifically related to the COVID-19 pandemic. For information about ROOTS ongoing relief efforts, please click here.

We will distribute funding through a total of four (4) cycles that are geographically prioritized within the ROOTS Region. ALL Southern states within the ROOTS region will be prioritized within one of the four cycles.

Cycle Dates: 

Application Opens: Tuesday, April 20

Applications Due: Thursday, May 13, 2021 by 12 pm EST

Notifications: Tuesday, June 8

The ROOTS Region covers the Southern area of the United States: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, and Washington D.C.

Solidarity Fund 2.0 is made possible through funding from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and our collaboration with the Intercultural Leadership Institute (ILI), which includes  First Peoples Fund, National Association of Latino Arts & Cultures (NALAC), PA’I Foundation, and Sipp Culture. This cohort of partners seeks to support arts and culture leaders and organizations of color, across diverse regions of the country, who typically fly beneath the national radar and national arts funding.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO APPLY?

We are committed to the equitable and inclusive distribution of resources across all Southern states within the ROOTS Region. We will distribute funding through a total of four (4) cycles that are geographically prioritized within the ROOTS Region. ALL Southern states within the ROOTS region will be prioritized within one of the four cycles. For this second cycle, we are only receiving applications from 

For this third cycle, we are only receiving applications from ALABAMA, FLORIDA, MISSISSIPPI, and NORTH CAROLINA. 

To be eligible to apply for the Solidarity Fund 2.0, ALL of the following must be true for you:

ARTISTS/CULTURAL WORKERS

• You are an individual artist or cultural worker living in ALABAMA, FLORIDA, MISSISSIPPI, and NORTH CAROLINA. 
• You are 18 years or older.
• You have experienced an unexpected financial emergency or hardship specifically related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

ORGANIZATIONS

• Must be a small arts organization existing in ALABAMA, FLORIDA, MISSISSIPPI, and NORTH CAROLINA. 
• The organization must have an annual operating budget of under $250,000.
• The organization experienced an unexpected financial emergency or hardship specifically related to the COVID-19 pandemic

HOW MUCH CAN I REQUEST?

With the Solidarity Fund 2.0, we aim to be radical in our approach to sharing the collective financial resources that we as an organization steward. Our hope is that the fund can support as many artists, cultural workers, and small arts organizations as possible. To that end:

• We ask that everyone requests the funds they need to stabilize while being mindful of your neighbors and the fact that we are a community experiencing a global crisis.
• As a starting point, the suggested range for individual artists is $500-$5000, and $5000-$20000 for organizations.
• We will revisit these guidelines in the first months of the program and may shift things as we better understand the needs of our region and the resources available to us.

HOW WILL REQUESTS BE REVIEWED & FUNDS DISPERSED?

Requests will be reviewed by Alternate ROOTS on a rolling basis as outlined in the cycle timeline. Unfunded requests and requests received after the deadline for each phase will roll over to the next phase until the cycle closes. Please do not submit more than one request per cycle. 

Funds can be dispersed via multiple modes: direct deposit, check, payment apps. Please see details in our Payment Information Sheet linked HERE. For questions about payment, please send an email to  payments@alternateroots.org or via phone at 404-577-1079 ext 302.